FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Feb. 11, 2020 Iowa hunters harvest nearly 95,000 deer from the 2019-20 seasons Test results are in, chronic wasting disease has been found in four new counties Proposed waterfowl rules available for public comment Iowa artists help celebrate state parks centennial Ice fishing shelters must be removed by Feb. 20 Trees for Kids grant applications due March 6 Space available in upcoming hunter education classes Iowa hunters harvest nearly 95,000 deer from the 2019-20 seasons Hunters reported harvesting nearly 94,000 deer during Iowa’s 2019-2020 hunting seasons, which is a decline from 2018-19, when hunters reported nearly 108,000 deer. Wildlife experts say while there are a number of factors that likely contributed to the decline, the most prominent is the outbreak of hemorrhagic disease that killed thousands of deer across the state. It was the second largest outbreak of hemorrhagic disease in Iowa, behind only the 2012/13 outbreak, and the reduced harvest is consistent with that following the 2013 outbreak. Tyler Harms, wildlife biologist with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR), said one of the department’s best population survey tools is the bow hunter observation survey where bow hunters record the number of deer and other wildlife species they observe each day from their treestand. The survey is conducted from Oct. 1 through the opening of first shotgun season. “The lower harvest corresponds with fewer deer bow hunters reported in their survey, and while the impact from hemorrhagic disease may have contributed to some of that decline, our hunters are also conservationists and if they perceive a drop in the deer population, they will make a decision on whether or not to kill more deer. This year, many of them decided not to,” Harms said. The Iowa DNR manages the deer herd to support a harvest of 100,000 to 120,000 deer that was based on the recommendations from the legislatively mandated deer advisory committee. “Our deer population has rebounded after hemorrhagic outbreaks in the past and we expect the same will be true after this outbreak,” Harms said. “From our perspective, we manage the population for the long term and impacts from this year – while significant – are likely a short blip on the horizon. Media Contact: Tyler Harms, Wildlife Biologist, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 515-777-5378. Test results are in, chronic wasting disease has been found in four new counties Chronic wasting disease has been confirmed in wild deer from Woodbury, Winneshiek, Fayette and Decatur counties this year, bringing the total number of counties in Iowa where wild deer have tested positive to eight. “We will schedule meetings in these areas in the next few months to discuss chronic wasting disease, our response and the role hunters play in helping us to manage for this disease,” said Tyler Harms, wildlife biologist with the Iowa DNR. In the past, the DNR has set up a surveillance zone around where the positive deer was taken, then works with hunters to increase the number of samples collected within the zone to get a better idea of the extent to which the disease is on the ground. “Early detection is key,” Harms said. “We want to increase the surveillance in close proximity to the positive deer to hopefully catch any other positives in the area. In these surveillance zones, we want to manage our deer herd toward the lower end of our population goal to help slow disease transmission.” The Iowa DNR submitted nearly 7,000 deer tissue samples for testing from hunter harvested or road killed deer collected statewide in the 2019-2020 season that resulted in 43 positive wild deer. “While the number of positives this year jumps out, it’s not out of the realm of what we would expect,” Harms said. The Iowa DNR contacted all hunters with a positive deer and offered the opportunity to come collect the deer meat, hide and other animal parts or were provided other options for carcass disposal. The Centers for Disease Control advises against consuming animals that have tested positive for disease. Hunters play an important role in preventing the spread of this disease by not using feed or salt-mineral licks that increase the concentration of deer, which can spread disease. Hunters who harvest a deer in a county known to have chronic wasting disease but who live in a county where the disease has not been found, should bone out their deer and either leave the carcass on the land where it was harvested or disposed of within that county. Contact the local landfill for requirements. Make absolutely sure not to transport and dump carcasses outside of the area where the deer were shot as this will spread the disease to new areas. The Iowa DNR samples deer from every county with increased sample quotas set in areas where the disease has been confirmed or where it has been confirmed across the border in neighboring states. The Iowa DNR has been testing deer for chronic wasting disease since 2002. The first positive was in 2013 near Harpers Ferry in Allamakee County. To date, there have been 89 positive wild deer. More information is available online at www.iowadnr.gov/cwd. Media Contact: Tyler Harms, Wildlife Biologist, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 515-777-5378. Proposed waterfowl rules available for public comment The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is accepting comments on proposed waterfowl and coot hunting seasons and bag limits, which includes 2021-22 season dates, and the proposed restructuring of the hunting zones and seasons for 2021-2025. A copy of the proposal is available online at https://www.iowadnr.gov/Hunting/Migratory- Game-Birds by clicking on the Chapter 91, Waterfowl and Coot Hunting Seasons link. The proposal modifies waterfowl hunting zone boundaries for 2021-2025 to expand the season dates of the current Missouri River zone across southern Iowa, create a central zone with the season dates of the current south zone, and move the southern boundary of the north zone. This modification expands later season dates across southern Iowa and part of central Iowa, but maintains the season dates of the current north and south zones across much of their former area. This proposal includes waterfowl and coot season dates for 2021-22 and extends the light goose conservation order from April 15 to May 1. The proposal includes modifying the daily bag limit for scaup, effective for the 2020 season, to one bird daily bag limit for the first 15 days of the duck season in each zone, followed by 45 days with a two-bird daily bag limit. The DNR is accepting comments through March 3, 2020. Comments may be submitted via email to [email protected] or sent via mail to Orrin Jones, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 1203 North Shore Drive, Clear Lake, Iowa, 50428. A public hearing is scheduled from 12-1 p.m., March 3, in the Wallace State Office Building Conference Room 5E, 502 East Ninth Street, Des Moines, IA 50319. Persons who wish to make oral comments will be asked to state their names for the record and to confine their remarks to the subject of this proposed rulemaking. Any person attending the public hearing and has special requirements such as those related to mobility or hearing impairments should contact the DNR or ADA Coordinator at 515-725-8200, Relay Iowa TTY Service 800-735-7942, or [email protected], and advise of specific needs. Iowa artists help celebrate state parks centennial Des Moines, Dubuque, Clarinda and Sioux City to host '20 Artists, 20 Parks' exhibition DES MOINES – Iowa’s state parks have inspired visitors ever since the first site, Backbone State Park, opened in Delaware County in 1920. A century later, the parks’ natural beauty is still a source of inspiration. A new art exhibition called “20 Artists, 20 Parks” opens next month in Des Moines before traveling to Dubuque, Clarinda and Sioux City. It showcases artwork that 20 Iowa artists made last summer in 20 state parks – all to celebrate the state parks centennial in 2020. The show is organized by the Iowa Arts Council, a division of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs; the Iowa Department of Natural Resources; and Iowa State University, which supplied the artists. “The artwork is as varied as the parks themselves, from the Maquoketa Caves to Stephens State Forest to Gull Point on Lake Okoboji,” said the Iowa Arts Council’s Veronica O’Hern, who helped curate the show. “Together the paintings, sculptures, textiles, photos, videos and other art forms capture the sights and sounds of these unique pockets of the Iowa landscape.” During their residencies last summer, the Iowa State artists – mostly fine-arts faculty, plus a few graduate students – worked closely with DNR park rangers to learn about the parks’ ecosystems. The artists visited often to take notes, draw sketches and gather ideas. Many of them created their artwork on site and will return to their assigned parks in summer 2020 to lead public demonstrations. “This project is really a win-win. It encourages outdoorsy folks to appreciate art and art fans to get outdoors,” said Todd Coffelt, chief of the DNR’s State Parks Bureau. “Both elements – art and nature – contribute to Iowa’s high quality of life.” Organizers decided the exhibition should travel in order to share the artwork statewide, as part of the DNR’s yearlong celebration of the parks centennial. Outdoor activities will ramp up this spring and summer at the 70 state parks and forests to highlight the importance of recreation, historic preservation, art, culture and natural resources.